Shooting and Scuba Blog

Today sees the first shipment of the SIG Sauer P320 Co2 Pistols arriving here in the UK from the distributor. If you're still undecided on ordering, let me see if I can whet your appetite with my own first hand impression of these.

On first pickup you really understand what they mean by heavyweight. The P320 firearm weighs in at 833g with an empty magazine, bringing the total weight over the 900g mark, in comparison the P320 Co2 weighs in at just over 900g with a Co2 bulb and empty magazine inserted, giving a realistic feel to the gun.

SIG P320 Co2 Pistol First Impression

The trigger has a nice first stage feel to it, with a noticeable change in pressure as you get to the second stage and a very crisp return. This accompanies a strong blowback action which makes this a very realistic pistol in terms of experience over consecutive shots.

Speaking of which, the Co2 consumption on these is pretty damn good - we expected a single bulb to last for just over the 30 shot magazine but the gun was able to cycle through two magazines happily. We'll just need to see what kind of power change happens when I shoot this more at the weekend.

Finally let me address one part of the gun that needs talking about. The safety is NOT your typical airgun safety. On a lot of pistols only a small amount of pressure is needed to engage or disengage the safety. The P320 however requires intentionally positive engagement when changing the safety position and my advice (not covered in the manual) is to come over the top of the gun as if to rack the slide and use your thumb to do all the work.

All in all a great first impression of a gun that we've all been waiting on and I'm looking forward to the weekend a lot more now!

As you've probably noticed, we're in the process of a bit of a face lift here at Shootingandscuba. We've got a brand new, custom interface for each of the areas of our website that should make finding exactly what you're after that little bit simpler!

There are however a few areas that need updating, which includes product reviews and some search functions so for the time being, please use the clickable navigation to find your way around.

We're still beavering away at the programming that will get all of this up and running but in the meantime we hope that the updates are helping you to find what you're looking for.

NEW Hollis Explorer MK2 Rebreather Upgrade

We have had a great time selling and teaching the Hollis Explorer MK1 user and Instructor courses over the last 3 to 4 years but there were a few things that niggled - Nick Hollis has explained the improvements that have sorted all these issues with the NEW Hollis Explorer Upgrade kit and Upgraded Mark 2 Hollis Explorer Rebreather SCR unit.

Having just taken delivery of our first shipment of the MK2 Hollis Explorer rebreather a few days ago, I had time to have a real look at the new unit and be prepared to ask Nick some tough questions.

Hollis MK2 LSS - Detachable Probe

So what has been upgraded on the Hollis Explorer RB?

Brand New designed LSS (Life Support System) Head - So what has improved

The Sensor module is now an integral part of the LSS not a separate unit. The new combined LSS is more reliable with much better comms than the separate LSS/Sensor model of the MK1. So we should not get the occasional HP reading errors you sometimes get on the MK1.

Hollis Explorer User changeable batteries

Rechargeable batteries

Major advantage is that the unit now has a set of 3 easily replaceable, rechargeable batteries, these can be changed by your local Hollis Explorer technician. These are accessible from the outside of the LSS by simply removing a few screws and inserting the 3 new rechargeable batteries. We have had a few battery problems on the MK 1 so this will help. The unit takes 18650 rechargeable batteries. These can easily be changed by Hollis Explorer technician.

Better LSS Cables

Improved lighter and stronger LSS and Hud cables with better connectors. These new cables are hard wired and can not be change in the field.

Explorer now uses same O2 cells as Prism2

New O2 Cells

The Explorer MK2 has been updated to take the same O2 Cells as the Prism 2 Rebeather for better connectivity and easier supply. This improved Molex type connector helps reduce problems sometimes found on the Mk1 caused by moisture on the pins that can cause corrosion.

Improved Heat Sensor probe

The heat sensor probe that goes inside the scrubber basket to give an indication of scrubber life can now be unplugged making it easier for flying and transporting the unit. This used to be part of the sensor model but now plugs into the combined LSS/Sensor module.

Co2 Sensor stays the same

Co2 sensor remains unchanged and still works very well.

Hollis Explorer New data and charging cable

Improved charging / data cable

The new charging cable now plugs into your normal USB charger, Laptop, USB car charger just like you phone but with a new improved date/charging cable. This should give us better data transfer than the old MK1 opt-icon cable. This new cable is also more robust, thinner and more water tight. The connection is now a true wet connection and does not have a cap covering the connector.

Metal Handset

The Hollis designed handset housing is now a die-cast metal housing (Similar but not the same as the VRM) and seems to be better made, stronger and with better buttons. The buttons can be stripped and cleaned by your Hollis Explorer technician if required. Another improvement, is the top cover is now part of the die-cast so no more covers popping off when you are diving.

Upgrade price

You will be able to upgrade the MK1 Hollis Explorer but we do not have any pricing information yet, upgrade kits are on the way, due before Xmas 2016. email the shop on dive@shootingandscuba.co.uk or call on 01202 473030 for price updates and to reserve your upgrade. We will update the website as soon as we have info.

Easy to upgrade yourself

It is a very easy job to upgrade your MK1 Explorer, Basically you just install a new LSS and away you go. The upgrade replaces the LSS/Sensor module, probe, handset, Hud and Cables. It does not need a technician but we are of course happy to help you for free or install the upgrade during your annual service with us.

The Hollis Explorer just got better

In my option I think the Hollis Explorer MK2 is a considerable improvement on the MK1, a great rebreather just got even better.

Even has a bungee to hold the inflator to stop it going behind your shoulder when diving.

All in all some good improvements to a really great rebreather and I look forward to diving the unit.

Although the MK1 Hollis Explorer has been replaced and only the MK2 Explorer is now supplied by Hollis the MK1 will still be fully supported including MK1 LSS repairs. We will still be servicing the MK1 for years to come.

Trevor A Leyland

PADI Course Director, Hollis Instructor Trainer and Explorer technician, with a lot of Explorer dives and courses under my belt over the last 3-4 years.

We don't teach you to pass an Exam... We teach you to become a professional PADI Diving Instructor and we support you through out your carrier as a PADI Pro, Part time of full time.

Why not become a PADI Instructor with TAL Scuba? Don't you deserve it?

UK 2017 PADI Instructor Exam Schedule - Finale approved dates. These dates are unlikely to change but you still need to check and book before attending. Do not just show up. Exam last 2 days, Normally a Saturday and Sunday. Is is normally a 7 am start on the first day.

Christian Laurent in the foreground..Is now working in Indonesia...and has been Living the dream since passing his IE last year, We are proud to say he has already become a PADI Staff Instructor and is working on his Master Instructor Rating.

Adventure Diving Malta is no more - Now WaterWorld

Adventure Diving Malta by the Sunny Coast Hotel, on the water front in Qawra Malta has closed, but do not fear the Scuba Dive Centre is still there and so are most of the great people that work there.

Rescued - Same Great Crew

TAL Scuba has used Adventure Diving Malta for many years but Alan has moved on to other things and the centre was to close, but then WaterWorld Water Sports have stepped in to help out and have taken over the PADI Scuba Dive Centre. They have kept on most of the existing Instructors with Ray becoming the new Director Of Diving DOD responsible for the day to day running of the centre. Ray is a great guy you will like him. Mikkel is also a DOD at the centre, who I have had the pleasure of working with many times and will make a very good DOD.

Now WaterWorld Malta

The Dive Centre where Adventure diving were based has been taken back over by Water World, the same great guys that run the jet ski and water sports centre from the same location.

This is a new Dive Centre and is not run by Alan who has moved on. This Scuba Centre still employees most of the same great staff that used to work for ADM, Adventure Diving Malta.

Water Sports

Waterworld offer some great Scuba Diving around Malta and Gozo and have a great team of Instructors. If by any chance you need a break from Scuba Diving you can always speed off on one of their Jet Ski's, go Water boarding, Water Skiing or even try water powered Rocket boots... or you could just hire a speed boat... Great for all the family

You can contact details for Water World Malta and what was Adventure Diving Malta

“The explorer is a completely different underwater experience. Its simple, silent …and special!”

Open Circuit Scuba Diving - More than a 1000 dives

I’ve been diving open-circuit for more than decade and have logged over 1000 dives. I like open-circuit SCUBA; its old-school cool and hasn’t changed all that much since Jacques-Yves Cousteau invented the Aqualung in 1943. Fittings are more-or-less standard all over the world, everything is easily serviceable, and air fills are cheap. This means, wherever you might be, diving is simple.
Time underwater is spent enjoying the wildlife and the scenery. Making it back alive, needn’t be a concern. This, surely, is why there are now 24,000,000 PADI divers worldwide, a club which you probably already belong to, and one which is still growing by 900,000 every year! Open-circuit SCUBA is wonderful!

Rebreather Diving - Rebreathers came first

…Rebreathers on the other hand are esoteric, difficult to use contraptions that are constantly trying to kill you. They are the realm of highly-trained aquanauts such as military frogmen, commercial divers and the hard-core technical diver (All of whom enjoy taking risks and probably don’t have to pay for their own kit) …or so the conventional wisdom goes. Wrong.

Rebreather technology actually pre-dates open-circuit SCUBA and has been developing since the early 1900’s. Closed-circuit rebreathers (CCR’s) are still apart from the Poseidon MKVI and Se7en still for tech-divers only, but enter the Hollis Explorer: a hybrid, semi-closed rebreather that almost any scuba diver can dive.

I learned to dive the Hollis Explorer - It was something special - with TAL Scuba, Dorset & Hampshire, UK

I qualified on the Hollis Explorer rebreather last weekend, at Vobster quay in the UK, and let me tell you it was special! I completed my PADI Rebreather Diver and Advanced Rebreather diver combined into one course with Trevor Leyland of TAL Scuba in Christchurch, Dorset and Ringwood, Hampshire, UK.

The difference between Open Circuit Scuba and Hollis Explorer diving

The first thing I noticed is just how quiet the Explorer is. On open-circuit SCUBA I’m constantly aware of the second stage. I’ve never quite decided if I like the noise or hate it, but what’s important is that the noise is always there, and the fish certainly don’t like it. The Explorer, however, is not just quiet but silent. The fish didn’t even know I was there and came right up to my mask! The sounds of the lake are something new.
The second thing I noticed is how user-friendly the Explorer is. It’s not difficult to dive at all and once you get used to it, assembly takes only a few minutes longer than open-circuit kit. The integrated handset pretty much does the pre-dive check for you, and the heads up display (HUD) makes it extremely unlikely that any problems go unnoticed. It’s simple to use, easy to read and impossible to lose!
At the end of the dive I thought to myself how far it surpasses open-circuit, even a twin-set. My first training dive lasted 75 minutes and I surfaced with more than an hour of dive-time remaining. With a little practice, you can dive for 2-3 hours on a 5L fill and you don’t use hardly any quicker if you dive deeper, unlike normal scuba: you can spend the entire dive on the bottom. I also thought how I was less fatigued and less de-hydrated than after a normal dive, which is apparently due to breathing warm, moist air instead of cold, dry air.
Hollis have done an excellent job developing a user-friendly unit with a very polished interface.

How much does the Hollis Explorer cost?

They’ve done an even better job at making it affordable; its recently dropped in price by £1500 and doesn’t cost a lot more than a high-end set of open-circuit kit. Currently the cost of Hollis Explorer including, BCD, Wing, Handset, Co2 monitor and even the gear gulpher to keep it in, is only £2995 (Oct 2016), Does not include cylinder or training. Cost Per-dive, £5 of scrubber (the chemical that removes carbon dioxide from your exhaled breath) and a 5L nitrox fill about the same cost as a twinset dive (And the twinset doesn’t last as long). Per hour, diving a rebreather is actually cheaper than normal SCUBA. So what are you waiting for?! – Discover Rebreather experiences are run each week, PADI Rebreather Diver and PADI Advanced Rebreather Diver courses run monthly. Phone the shop to arrange yours now!

How long is the training for the Hollis Explorer

I looked around before choosing Trevor Leyland of TAL Scuba for my training and I looked at other training agencies. Trevor is a Hollis Instructor Trainer on the Hollis Explorer and other rebreathers and a factory trained technician, so I know he knows his stuff.

Trevor recommend I did the combined PADI Rebreather and PADI Advanced Rebreather course over 4 days. This is what I chose because having research other training agencies and courses I found the training materials and depth of training to be far superior on the PADI course than others I looked at, which had less dives, were cheaper, but just did not seem to cover all the things I wanted to know and had little or no materials.

We spent 2 full days in the classroom and pool, with over 3 hours, and 3 dives in the pool fine tuning skills and the trim of the unit and learning how to use bailout cylinders. How to assemble the unit and fault find. How strip the Explorer clean it between dives and for storage. A very good presentation on packing scrubber and how sofnolime works. Trevor was also teaching a Hollis Instructor course at the same time, This will be next on my list of courses.

Then off to Sunny Vobster quay for 5 Open Water dives and some great under water diving. We did lots of skills but also had a lot of time to just dive and get to used to the unit... I can't wait to get my own Hollis Explorer Rebreather.. Or rather the Hollis Explorer Mark 2??? Due in November.... Watch this space for more on the Explorer 2 Rebreather